Lenovo's IdeaPad Y560D 3D Laptop Reviewed

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Introduction

Lenovo's IdeaPad Y560D is an interesting system that initially caught our eye thanks to its 3D-capable display. 3D films and TVs have been declared hot ticket capabilities by the film industry and TV manufacturers, but this is the first 3D-capable notebook we've had in house. The Y560D isn't the only 3D laptop on the market, but it's priced with more of an eye towards mainstream consumers; most 3D notebooks to date have been aimed at the high-end/enthusiast market. At $1399 on sale the 560D isn't cheap, but it's a more affordable than most of the competition.

We've put the Y560D through our standard benchmarks as well as a suite of 2D/3D tests designed to measure relative image quality. Three-dimensional projection may be one of the laptop's main selling points, but users will still spend the overwhelming majority of the time staring at a 2D screen. If you're shopping around on Lenovo's site, make sure you pick the Y560D instead of the Y560—the additional letter denotes 3D capability.

Lenovo IdeaPad Y560D Notebook

Specifications and Features (as tested)

Intel Core i7-720QM CPU (1.6GHz; quad-core with Hyper-Threading)

4GB of DDR3-1066 RAM

15.6" LCD (1366x768 resolution)

ATI Mobility Radeon 5730
1GB Dedicated GPU RAM

500GB 7200 RPM (5400 RPM*)

Intel Centrino Advanced-N 6200

8x DVD±RW/CD-RW optical drive

1.3 Megapixel Webcam

VGA and HDMI Outputs

USB 2.0 x 3; eSATA/USB x 1

RJ-45 (Ethernet 10/100)

Headphone / Mic Input Jacks

SD / MMC / SDHC / xD / MS / MS Pro Multimedia Card Reader

JBL Stereo Speakers

Gesture-Enabled Elan Multi-Touch Trackpad

6.2 Pounds (with 6-cell battery installed)

Removable 6-Cell (57 Wh) Li-ion Battery

"Up To 3.5 Hours" Claimed Battery Life

15.1" (W) x 8.5" (D) x 1.3" (H) (Dimensions)

Windows 7 Home Premium (64-bit)

1-Year Warranty

Price (MSRP): $1399

We always request review hardware that's physically identical to actual shipping hardware, that consumers can actually by. Unfortunately, Lenovo had dropped a 7200 RPM hard drive in our test system which isn't available as an option on the model we tested.

We're not the only publication that Lenovo sampled with a 7200 RPM drive, but we're not exactly enthused by the situation. Unlike its competitors, Lenovo does not allow customers to change any aspect of an IdeaPad's shipping configuration. Save for a single, minimal "choose your own components" option, all IdeaPad's are sold strictly as listed, no exceptions. We confirmed this twice with Lenovo's sales staff, first asking about hardware changes in general, second asking if we could swap the hard drive specifically.

Update, October 26, 2010: We were informed today that an error on the Lenovo website incorrectly listed the 5400RPM hard drive as the only option, when in fact the 0646-2NU model we tested does include a 7200RPM drive.